Carruthers up for National service after impressive win in Hennessy Gold Cup

Trainer Mark Bradstock has Chepstow’s Welsh National on December 27 as the next target for Hennessy hero Carruthers.

The eight-year-old is a 7-1 second favourite for the Welsh marathon behind Jonjo O’Neill’s Synchronised (6-1), last year’s winner.

Bradstock said: ‘We will see what happens in the next couple of days but he seems very perky. He is a stronger individual this season. We had problems with muscle enzymes last season and he was very flat all year but he came back looking a million dollars.’

Hero: Carruthers won the Hennessy Gold Cup on Saturday

Carruthers was bred and is part-owned by Lord Oaksey, Bradstock’s father-in-law, and the trainer has big hopes for the gelding’s half-brother Coneygree, a Bumper winner at Uttoxeter on Thursday. He will make his hurdling debut in the next few weeks.

Meanwhile, Donald McCain has a chase at Haydock on December 17 as the next target for Peddlers Cross after he made it two from two over fences at Bangor on Saturday.

McCain’s Fighting Fifth Hurdle hero Overturn will skip a rematch with the runner-up Binocular in the Christmas Hurdle at Kempton but Newbury’s impressive Gerry Feilden Hurdle winner Rock On Ruby could go for that race.

Stunning effort: Overturn beat Binocular in Newcastle

His trainer Paul Nicholls said Master Minded still has the King George as his target, possibly alongside Kauto Star, and would not run in Saturday’s Tingle Creek.

Nicholls said: ‘It might have been tempting to run Master Minded if it had been very soft but he had quite a hard race at Ascot last week.’ Nicholls relies on Tataniano in the Sandown race.

Meanwhile, look forward to a series of Frankel versus team Aidan O’Brien challenges next summer now that Prix du Moulin winner Excelebration has moved to the Irish trainer from Marco Botti’s Newmarket base. O’Brien also has So You Think as a potential rival for Frankel.